Self-sufficiency in food production is the new mantra of donors and policymakers in Africa. But farmers, large and small, can be much more ambitious. Agriculture is the continent’s most neglected – and important – potential competitive advantage. It is Africa’s best answer to...

Predictions of a Green Revolution in Africa are overstated. Investment in African agriculture has been neglected by governments and donors. The proportion of aid allocated to agriculture fell from 17% in 1980 to 3% in 2005.1 Population growth and declining productivity among...

Malawians depend on domestic crops from over-cultivated soils. Recurrent poor harvests have had disastrous consequences for food security, but yields have improved significantly since the introduction of a government scheme to improve access to fertiliser by smallholder farmers....

This briefing note highlights the role of fertiliser subsidies in Malawi, the world’s fifth poorest country. Malawi has suffered recurrent poor harvests, with disastrous consequences for food security since the early 1990s. Yields have improved significantly in the past two...